Police search for teenager after two shot dead at Michigan university

US police are searching for a young man suspected of killing two people at a central Michigan University residence hall on the same day parents were arriving to pick up students beginning their spring break.

Police released a photo of James Eric Davis Jr, urging the public to call 911 if they see him but also warning that the 19-year-old should not be confronted.

The campus was locked down, and students and staff were told to find shelter.

Police search for the shooting suspect (Matthew Smith/AP)

“He should be considered armed and dangerous,” campus police spokesman Larry Klaus said.

The shooting occurred at Campbell Hall, a residence hall at Central Michigan, which is about 70 miles north of Lansing. Police described the shooting as a “family-type domestic situation” and said the victims were not students.

Police declined to confirm news reports that said Davis fatally shot his parents when they came to pick him up for spring break.

Mr Klaus said video at the dorm suggests Davis fled on foot after the shooting. He was wearing a hoodie but had been shedding certain clothes while on the run.

The search was focused on Mount Pleasant neighbourhoods near campus.

Officers in camouflage knocked on doors and checked possible hiding places, such as yards and porches. In the surrounding community, students and staff in the Mount Pleasant school district were told not to leave nine buildings.

CMU police confirm two individuals were fatally shot at Campbell Hall on campus this morning. The deceased are not students and police believe the situation started from a domestic situation. There are no additional injuries; suspect is still at large: https://t.co/AxvPn3N0s0

Mr Klaus said Davis was taken to a hospital on Thursday night by campus police because of a drug-related health problem, possibly an overdose.

Davis is from Plainfield, Illinois, and graduated from Central High School in 2016, said Tom Hernandez, a spokesman for Plainfield School District 202.

The shooting occurred on the last day of classes before a week-long break. Parents who were trying to pick up students were told instead to go to a local hotel where staff would assist them while the manhunt was ongoing.

A student, Tyler Whipple, was driving through campus when his route was blocked off by police cars at the scene of the killings. He had to catch a flight to Florida.

“These roads are kind of spooky right now,” Mr Whipple said.

The school posted an alert on Friday morning on social media about shots being fired at Campbell Hall.

Halie Byron, 20, said she locked herself in her off-campus house, about a 10-minute walk from Campbell Hall.

“It’s scary thinking about how easy a shooter can come into a college campus anywhere — a classroom, a library. There’s so much easy access,” Ms Byron said.